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Unhappy fans are demanding refunds for Jay Chou concert over bad sound system

SINGAPORE — More than 1,800 angry Jay Chou fans have signed an online petition to demand for a refund, after the Taiwanese crooner’s concert at the Singapore Sports Hub last Saturday (Sept 3) was marred by audio issues such as muffled sounds and overpowering bass.

Jay Chou put up a great performance but the poor sound system has led some affected fans to call for refunds. Photo: Andrew Ang

Jay Chou put up a great performance but the poor sound system has led some affected fans to call for refunds. Photo: Andrew Ang

SINGAPORE — More than 1,800 angry Jay Chou fans have signed an online petition to demand for a refund, after the Taiwanese crooner’s concert at the Singapore Sports Hub last Saturday (Sept 3) was marred by audio issues such as muffled sounds and overpowering bass.

The petition was started on Sunday by media producer Goh Ying Sheng, 28, who had attended the almost three-hour-long gig. Goh, who sat at Section 612 and purchased a category 6 ticket for S$118, admitted that he did not expect much from the lower tier tickets but was unhappy that sound quality was compromised. “We don’t expect to see him (Jay Chou) up close but we expect to at least hear a sharp and clear sound,” he told TODAY.

“Sound is the basic necessity of a concert, but it wasn’t delivered at all, so it was a horrible experience and the organiser ought to be responsible for it and make refunds,” he added.

As at 7.30pm, 1,801 people have signed the petition on gopetition.com, up from 1,347 at 12pm. The petition has also been shared on Facebook more than 2,600 times.

Jay Chou’s The Invincible concert tour had drawn over 40,000 attendees, with tickets priced from S$88 to S$388. Tickets were snapped up quickly when they were released in February, with the S$388 tier selling out within half an hour.

The problems that beset Jay Chou’s The Invincible concert tour were not the first. His Opus 2 Jay 2014 World Tour at the same location had also led some fans to complain about muffled sounds.

When approached, Multimedia Entertainment and Singapore Sports Hub said in a joint statement that sound engineers from abroad were engaged by Multimedia Entertainment to provide advice on the sound system and its set-up, including speaker locations. “The quality of speakers was also improved from Opus 2 and some of the speaker locations were changed from the seating map in order to minimise obstruction of view,” said the statement.

“Over 40,000 fans attended the The Invincible concert last Saturday. From feedback, many had a positive stadium concert experience but we note that patrons in some sections had feedback about the sound quality,” it added. “We take all feedback seriously, and continue to work towards improving patron experience.”

Asked whether there would be any refunds given, a spokesman from the Singapore Sports Hub would only refer TODAY to section 10 under its Terms and Conditions of Ticket Sale and Entry. There, it states: “No refund will be made under any circumstances, except at (the) promoter’s discretion if the event is postponed or cancelled, and then according to (the) promoter’s refund policy. Conditions of refund will be available at the box office.”

Goh is not optimistic on whether his petition for refunds would be successful, but pointed out that “with the signatures increasing every minute, being ignorant to it is a very irresponsible act of a business”.

“It is obvious that many fans are affected ... They should certainly think and reflect before deciding,” he added.

In his petition, Goh claimed that the segment of audience who were not seated in line with the speakers or levelled with the stage could only hear muffled sound and a strong bass throughout, adding that none of what Chou was singing or talking could be heard sharply and clearly.

Several fans expressed their frustration on the Singapore Sports Hub’s Facebook page as well. “The minute he appeared on stage, the bass and echo was so loud that we couldn’t even hear (what the song is). And when they were talking, we couldn’t even hear what they were saying. Everyone at my section were complaining they can’t hear clearly,” said Daphne Tay.

“I was at Jay Chou concert last night, but felt like I wasn’t (there) because the sound system was utterly atrocious ... I almost left halfway because it is the same as watching recorded videos,” added Chiang Zhen Hao, “It was a terrible experience, easily the worst concert ever.”

Still, there were some who did not find their experience at the Singapore Sports Hub that unpleasant. Lee Jian Long, 23, who paid S$288 for his category 2 ticket told TODAY that while “there was a bit of noise from the sound system at the beginning of the concert”, it was “fine after that”.

He added: “I can hear the music clearly. The overall experience is still acceptable.”

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